The EastAfrican NEWS MARCH 1-7,2014 Lawmake≥s call fo≥ P≥esident’s ≥esignation ove≥ ≥ise in insecu≥ity THE WORSENING security situation in Somalia’s capital has prompted the country’s top leaders to pledge to arrest it, especially in the capital. Al Qaeda-linked militants stormed the highly protected seat of government on February 21. Many Somalis, who toler- ated the inefficiency of the previous transitional governments, are now angry about the insecurity in the country, with a lawmakers calling for President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to resign “because he’s failed to deliver on his promises of peace and development.” Thousands of Somalis in Adan Elmi, has also dismissed the report, saying its allegations were “unfounded.” But the report depicts a differ- ent picture, saying it has identified “a number of issues and concerns over current management of weapons and ammunition stockpiles by the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), which point to high level and systematic abuses in weapons and ammunition management and distribution.” The report alleges that the gov- ernment did not sufficiently report to the Security Council on its military structure, logistical infrastructure and arms control procedures, and that “notification procedures for the delivery of weapons to Somalia appear to be insufficiently detailed.” Since last year’s waiver, So- malia has received weapons and equipment from an unidentified Gulf state as well as Djibouti, Ethiopia and Uganda, but the report reveals that some of those weapons were diverted to the black market, to the Al Shabaab and even to clan militiamen allied with government officials. It says that “large quantities of ammunition” have been diverted to the black market, “leaked by rogue elements” of the national army. It particularly expresses “serious concerns” about 1,000 AK-47’s that were delivered from Uganda but were diverted out of government control. The report accuses two prom- inent clans — the Abgaal and Habar Gedir clans — of “at times working against the development of peace and security in Somalia through the distribution of weapons to parallel security forces and clan militias that are not part of the Somali security forces.” The US Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, last month predicted that “the credibility and effectiveness of the young Somali government will be further threatened by persistent political infighting and weak leadership from President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.” The UN report talks of instanc- es in which government officials have been funnelling weapons to allied militiamen to give a boost to their clansmen engaged in recent clashes in Jowhar city as well as the central and Lower Shabelle regions. It accuses an unnamed govern- ment minister of providing logistical support for the creation of militia forces in central regions of Somalia in co-operation with a “known general” from the army. misgivings among Weste≥n dono≥s the federal and decentralised system as per the interim constitution. Mogadishu was initially opposed to the establishment of an autonomous administration in Jubaland led by Sheikh Ahmed Islaam (commonly known as Sheikh Madobe), and has been in negotiations with other autonomous regions like Puntland and Galmudug to get Jubaland to abandon their quest for self-determination. The issue of regional administra- tion has also brought about friction between Kenya and Somalia, with Mogadishu strongly believing that Nairobi is keen to influence local politics through Sheikh Madobe. Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed. Picture: AFP Somali soldiers patrol the streets of Mogadishu on February 22. A UN report says the Somali government has allowed the sale and diversion of weapons to foreign arms traffickers, criminals and terrorists. Picture: AFP the diaspora — including Mohamud Hirsi Abdulle, a Somali-Canadian who worked at the prime minister’s office and died in last Friday’s attack — returned to rebuild their country after President Mohamud, a former political activist, took the helm in 2012. In response to Friday’s attack, President Mohamud promised “security changes,” saying that, “it is not propaganda. It’s a part of the campaign against Al Shabaab.” Al Shabaab spokesman Ali Rage said the group wanted to kill President Mohamud or capture him. That attack “will not deflect us from our aim of eradicating Al Shabaab from this country,” said President Mohamud. “It will not change our minds. It will not frighten us. Instead, it will just embolden, harden us and encourage us as well as give us more confidence.” But many are doubtful that the security situation in the country will change, especially in Mogadishu, which has recently experienced night clashes and mortar attacks between Al Shabaab and security forces. “More will come,” warned Stig Jarle Hansen, a Norwegean scholar who has written a book on Al Shabaab. Somalia’s current govern- ment, the first non-transitional government since the collapse of the country’s central government in 1991, has failed to harness the international outpouring of support it received after its establishment in 2012. For instance, the govern- ment has been dealing with internal politics, like the Jubbaland administration — which it first rejected and then recognised. It is now grappling with calls to form an administration for southwestern regions. But the most damaging interruption came when de9 The debris after an attack in front of the presidential palace on February 21 in Mogadishu. Picture: AFP bilitating infighting erupted between the president and former prime minister Abdi Farah Shirdon; the dispute led to Mr Shirdon being fired through a parliamentary vote of no confidence. Somali lawmaker Abdu- latif Musse Nur said, “Nothing will improve as long as President Mohamud is in power,” warning that if he didn’t resign, he and other like-minded lawmakers would use their parliamentary powers to hold the president accountable. “The source of the current problems facing the country is the president, who has usurped the powers of the prime minister,” said Mr Nur, allegations President Mohamud denies. Urging “collective action” to “eliminate” Al Shabaab, Somalia’s Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed said he would set up a committee “to assess the strength and performance of security agencies, including the intelligence, the police and the military.” “The aim of this commit- tee is,” Mr Ahmed said in a statement, “is to issue recommendations on enhancing the readiness, responsiveness and effectiveness of the national security agencies.” But Abdiwahab Sheikh Abdisamad, a Horn of Africa specialist who teaches history and political science at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, said Al Shabaab has infiltrated the Somali security forces, and that the government needs “serious vetting of its security apparatus” before taking other measures. Malkhadir Muhumed